Wallas Smoking...help!

Pat Anderson":30fb4l2q said:
I will get the usual flack ("My Wallas has worked perfectly for 10 years", etc., etc.) but this just proves once again, there are two kinds of people in the world - those whose Wallas has failed, and those whose Wallas is going to fail. One by one, every Wallas is going to bite the dust and leave its owner inconvenienced at least and possibly worse.

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While what you say is a very compelling argument, I am certain you realize this happens to everything we build; from the beautiful pickups we pull our boats with, to the boats themselves, all of it will crap out someday. As for a reason not to get one, a parallel would be not to wipe your butt because it is just going to get dirty again anyway. Why bother, right? Of course, I am just joking..... I mean, that is really gross.....LOL....

I accept the fact that it will require maintenance and someday and it will have to be fixed just like everything else I own....Where some see flaws, I see ingenuity. It fills a niche that nothing else really fills - all in one neat little package. And for the most part, they are dependable enough and don't require servicing for a really long time. In fact, I have WAY more money and time invested in servicing my BF 45s to keep them going then I do in my stove. I concede it would be nice to not ever have to work on my stove, or ever spend money on it due to wear and tear, but things just don't work that way.

As far to the original poster's question, it is time to get it serviced at Scan Marine. And from what I am told, it isn't going to be cheap (hope it is though). But, what is cheap on a boat anyways?
 
what is cheap on a boat anyway? any cook top other then a wallas. I know that i have to service all the moving parts on my boat but the wallas was a on going challenge. Two of the main problems where faulty control boards that did not break until the warranty was out but were know faulty parts by the maker and the over priced dealer. When the yearly repair bill was more then what a better working replacement is, 3x more in fact, then I call the lemon a lemon. My brother once had a jaguar 4 door. Nice looking car and a blast to drive, when that useless pos ran for more then a month at a time. Honda and host of others make a far cheaper , better running and far more reliable product.

I was once a firm believer in the wallas. never let me down for the first year. Then $600 in repairs latter I was pissed but was told it would not happen again. Two $600 plus repairs later it worked for a year when I sold the boat but its just a time bomb. Much happier with my far cheaper bullet proof , just light and cook alcohol stove and espar diesel heater. I spent half on the espar then I did fixing the wallas.
 
Tom,
I was told you can't really own a Jaguar, you just get visitation privileges. Maybe some stoves are made of the same cloth. For me a repair bill on a 3000 dollar stove of six hundred dollars is a tad more than I would consider normal maintance thats just my uninformed opinion. Toliet paper is cheaper than the creame they use for diaper rash. Wiping your butt is preventitive maintance in it's most basic form and should not be compared to getting your clock cleaned by the stove pirates. :D I feel bad about the guy freezing his cahones off up north. I thought a little humor might cheer him up. :)
D.D.
 
Just checked in to see what condition Sam, on Sucia is in. Hmmm, now word, hope He was able to get through the night,, (no hypothermia), and maybe get connected to Scan marine today and get the Wallas working and give us an update.

I'm in the I (still) love my Wallas. (Doing Kleen Heat and steady power, with the switch on high for turn on and off modes), it has been flawless.

Harvey
SleepyC

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Thanks for the concern Harvey. I'm used to backcountry travel...backpacking, skiing, etc, and had plenty of warm gear with me. Not having the Wallas was inconvenient but not dangerous.

I ended up taking the whole thing apart and putting it back together (maybe not properly) and the lights indicated it was working properly but it was still smoking and leaking fuel out of the bottom. I headed back to Twin Bridges this morning, pulled the Wallas, and dropped it by Scan Marine on the way home. They were very helpful over the phone even though they couldn't solve the issue and said the stove should be back to me tomorrow. No idea what it will cost.

I'm really tempted to sell the Wallas and get an Espar furnace and Origo cooktop installed. I've got some research to do...
 
We had our Wallas serviced for the first time this past summer. The experts at Scan Marine say that all things need servicing at some time or another. After six seasons, we finally had a need for servicing. Not too bad considering. Total cost, approx $250 if I can remember correctly.

That's my guess, $250 + tax.
 
Well I can't stand it any longer, I have to jump in here. I have had our Wallas stove for 10 years last July and have had no trouble. It failed to start one time, cause was a low battery. Started the engines and it fired right up. I have decided to take it in to Scan Marine and have it serviced in January, I don't want a failure when cruising. I am concerned about the fan which has a fairly short life span. I am also sure it needs to be cleaned. It would be interesting to have a poll to see how everyone else feels about there Wallas Stove. I agree with Jim, I would order one again if a new boat was in the mix. I, also have talked several times to Scan and they are always very helpful. Their recommendation is to burn the new low sulphur diesel.
 
As I thought about this I was taken back to my Dad's last boat, a 45' Cruise-A-Home.

In the main salon it had a wonderful heater called "The Cat".

It was a catalytic heater (like the heat buddy) but it was permanently installed, AND VENTED.

So I searched the net ("THE CAT" catalytic heater) and the 1st return took me Here.

I think it's different than my Dad's but it appears to function the same.

As I read through the specs I saw that it draws less than 0.5 amp after startup.

That's a huge factor for our little boats with their limited battery capacity.

I'm always thinking about "the next heater" as the Wallas is so complex and finicky.

The next time I'm faced with a major overhaul I'll probably jump to something else that's simpler and more reliable.

Here's one installed in a vanagon westfalia camper

I wonder if it could be installed on one of the aisle-facing cabinets such as the one that houses the water tank ?

From their site...
"THE PLATINUM CAT is most easily installed on an outside wall. However, because THE PLATINUM CAT uses a power vent system, it can also be installed on an inside wall or in a basement. Regular Schedule 40 ABS or PVC drainpipe can be used for up to 20' of additional exhaust pipe with up to four 90 degree turns. "

I'm eager to hear what this group thinks so please chime in.
 
It looks like I can buy an Espar Airtronic D2 for $995 from this website:
http://www.lubricationspecialist.com/airtronic-2/airtronic-d2-7500-btu-air-heater/

What else would be needed for the install? And if I have it professionally installed, what (ballpark) would it cost? Basically, what's the all in price of the Espar?

I would probably use one of these for cooking:
http://www.defender.com/product.jsp?path=-1|406|694|1066022&id=1065851

Hmmm...another few boat units and I could be all squared away...
 
It's sad how many times i've read of people having problems with their wallas. If an engine had this many problems it would be recalled. Scan marine is understandably helpful because they have made a killing repairing the wallas. These stoves are awesome...when they work, but how can anyone think its normal to spend hundreds, sometimes thousands on maintenance and parts to keep these stoves working??!! Especially after spending thousands just to purchase the damn thing! Since getting my cdory 3 years ago my wallas has failed me on numerous occasions, every time out on the isolated coast of northern BC when i needed it the most. After doing some research i fixed it myself by finding part numbers off of failed components and ordering them from electronic suppliers NOT scam marine. By doing so i saved hundreds. But it still doesn't make up for all the times the wallas has let me down when i needed it the most.
Anyway life is good when all we have to complain about is the diesel heater in our pleasure craft that doesn't work as it should. In this day and age when children are starving and wars are being fought we should all take a step back and be thankful for what we have never taking anything for granted, after all things could be alot worse :wink Happy holidays everyone
 
As a DIY project we spent about $1300 for our espar install. I really don't want to guess what professional installation would cost. I think boat electric sells their DIY kit for around $2500. You are going to need a mount, exhaust pipe with insulating sleeve and thru hull. More ducting to get the register where you want it. You'll also need a fuel tank if you don't want to use the wallas tank. Oh yeah, and you get to drill a big hole in the side of your hull!

Well worth it from our perspective. We have had three trouble free years of service from our espar. And love how warm and dry our boat is.

Karl
 
I'm pretty sure that Pat Anderson had his Espar installed by Triton. So either he or Triton could give you a ball park figure (Triton could probably give you a true estimated cost). Call Scott and ask.
 
starcrafttom":2f2p48je said:
I was once a firm believer in the wallas. never let me down for the first year. Then $600 in repairs latter I was pissed but was told it would not happen again. Two $600 plus repairs later it worked for a year when I sold the boat but its just a time bomb. Much happier with my far cheaper bullet proof , just light and cook alcohol stove and espar diesel heater. I spent half on the espar then I did fixing the wallas.
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What you went through with your stove is rediculous. They are expensive and I am sorry to hear yours wasn't worth beans. I am on my second one as the first one went with boat (a single burner unit) it was in when I sold it. This one, I bought at Alaska Mining and Diving, installed it myself, and it performs well enough. Knock on wood I guess....

But with that said, I have been thinking of adding some more heat and the D2 looks pretty nice. While I do enjoy the wallas most of the year, for winter king fishing it is barely marginal as it is often only 10 or so degrees out during those nice high pressure days with no wind. It simply is not very warm in the cabin and another source of heat would make things a bit nicer. Do you have the D2? OR????

How hard was the install?
 
WOW, one day and this post is on page three.

My beloved Wallas gave up the ghost last year toward the end of the season, what a drag; pulled the unit and UPS’s to Scan marine.

4 seasons an over 1500 hours; Scan said it looked like new. Problem was the pump had failed, black smoke just like yours. They cleaned her up and sent back good as new.

Said reason why the eternal parts looked do good was we used diesel instead of clean heat or Kerosene, it has way longer stability and burns much cleaner.

So I would suggest pulling the unit and taking it to Scan Marine; way better than messing around with the dang thing for hours on end like I did.

You can hear the pump go thump, thump, thump every time the RED LED light blinks on the circuit board, if this isn’t happening chances are the pump is shot.
 
breausaw":3ipbcqws said:
Said reason why the eternal parts looked do good was we used diesel instead of clean heat or Kerosene, it has way longer stability and burns much cleaner.
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Jay,

Just curious, since the stove died, did you purposely use the word "eternal" parts instead of internal....LOL...Either way, it is pretty dang funny.....

Tim
 
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